Ofuro
/oʊˈfʊəroʊ/noun
A Japanese-style deep soaking bath or bathtub.
Did you know?The initial “o-” is a Japanese honorific prefix, so ofuro is essentially a respectful or polite form of furo, meaning “bath.”
Etymological Timeline
Pre-modern Japanese
Japanese
furo
“Bath or bathing place; the exact earlier origin of the word is uncertain.”
8th–12th Century
Japanese
風呂
“The written form furo, using characters literally associated with “wind” and “place/container,” though the characters do not establish the word’s original meaning.”
Medieval Japanese
Japanese
お風呂
“Polite or honorific form of furo, with o- added before the noun.”
20th Century
English
ofuro
“A Japanese soaking bath, adopted as a loanword in English.”